The USS Constellation (1854) is a historic sloop-of-war and the last sail-powered warship designed and built by the United States Navy. Constructed at the Gosport Shipyard between 1853 and 1855, she was designed to be a fast, durable warship utilizing existing stocks of live oak timber, with a hull model prepared by Chief Constructor John Lenthall. She measures approximately 181 feet at the waterline and 199 feet overall, with a beam of 41 feet at the waterline and a maximum draft of 21 feet. Displacing around 1,400 long tons, she was crewed by 21 officers and 265 enlisted men. Her armament in original configuration consisted of sixteen 8-inch shell-firing guns, four 32-pounder long guns, two Parrott rifle chase guns, and three boat howitzers. Fitting out included installing masts, rigging, and armament, making her a formidable vessel for her time. Commissioned on 28 July 1855 under Captain Charles H. Bell, Constellation served initially with the Mediterranean Squadron until 1858, protecting American interests and aiding in civil unrest situations. She then joined the Africa Squadron in 1859 as flagship, patrolling against the Atlantic slave trade, capturing slave ships such as the brig Delicia and the barque Cora, which held 705 slaves before their release. During the Civil War, she returned to the Mediterranean to patrol for Confederate vessels, then moved to the West Indies in 1864 before returning to the US, where most of her crew was discharged, and she served as a receiving ship until 1869. Recommissioned in 1871, she spent 22 years as a training vessel and participated in transporting exhibits to the 1878 Exposition Universelle and aiding Irish famine relief in 1879. She was later reduced to a stationary training ship, moored at Newport for two decades, and was involved in commemorative events like the 1914 Star-Spangled Banner anniversary. Throughout her service, she underwent multiple restorations and name changes, notably being called "Old Constellation" during her port port-of-call and briefly renamed in 1917. Recommissioned during WWII as a flagship, she was eventually preserved as a museum ship in Baltimore, where extensive restorations in the late 20th century addressed wood rot and structural issues. Today, Constellation is a National Historic Landmark, part of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor attractions, and remains significant as the last intact naval vessel that saw active Civil War service and the last sail-only warship built by the U.S. Navy.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.